Share this article

'It affected my self-esteem,' he explained. 'I never saw the positive out of it. I realized my body would never be like that.'

Over time he has learned to step back and 'talk himself out of' trying to emulate someone he's not.

'It affected my self-esteem, I never saw the positive out of it. I realized my body would never be like that'

Mike McFarland, a licensed psychologist also based in the city, uses cognitive behavioral therapy to treat clients with exercise or eating issues.

He says that he worked with one man who lost his professional job due to his regimented fitness regime which compromised his ability to focus.

Other side effects of extreme physical exertion can include injury, decreased muscle mass and joint issues.

'It's like a moth
to a flame,' he said. 'Everything their life centers around is their body.

'They may be setting the alarm for 2am
to have a protein shake. Their inflexible regimen gets in the way
oftentimes of normally functioning in life.'

Unrealistic ideals: Many men aspire to the 'magazine cover body'

For most men, the obsession often starts during their late teens or twenties. But Mr McFarland says that he is now starting to see older men display the same symptoms.

Many, he says, turn to steroids or testosterone as they strive to look like someone half their age.

'A lot of guys in their late 40s and 50s
suddenly are having bodies that look more like they're in their 20s and
30s,' he said.

'It's
a slippery slope. You start to get those accolades, and you hit the gym
more and hang out with people achieving similar goals. It can be a
feedback loop that takes people farther down that path.'

'A lot of guys in their late 40ssuddenly are having bodies that look more like they're in their 20s... It's a slippery slope'

Bigorexia, more formally known as muscle dysmorphia, is like anorexia but in reverse.

Whereas anorexics think they are too fat when they are actually too thin, bigorexics think they look puny when, in fact, they are muscular.

The condition was first identified by psychiatrists in the U.S. in the late Nineties.

Fitness guru Mr Durio explained that people who suffer from Bigorexia do not have a normal view of their body and don't know when to stop.

'We have one guy at the gym who has
jacked up his body so badly he looks like a cartoon character,' he revealed.

Bigorexia can also affect women but according to Men's Fitness Magazine 90per cent of sufferers are men.